Eskom has notified both the Gamagara and Tsantsbane local municipalities that due to failure to honour their pay-ment agreements, electricity supply will be interupted until such time as the agree-ments have been renewed.According to notifications published in leading daily newspapers, Gamagara owes Eskom R65 572 564.51 and Tsantsabane R85 061 060.00.Eskom states that due to its statutory obli-gation to supply electricity to the country, the outstanding amounts are threatening the financial sustainability of its service provision nationally.The towns of Kathu, Olifantshoek, Dingle-ton and Postmasburg are affected.The notice provides a schedule of the down times over a three week period. During the first week from 29 March - 05 April 2018, the power will off between 06:00 - 08:00 and 17:00 - 19:30.During the second week from 06 April - 11 April 2018 the down times will be between 06:00 - 09:00 and 17:00 - 20:30. During the third week, electricity will not be available from 06:00 - 20:00 and this down time will remain until such time as the agree-ment has been renewed and re-activated. There are specific times for weekends also.Eskom adds that it reserves the right to completely disconnect power indefinitely with only a 15-day notice period if no pro-gress is made by the respective munici-palities with regard to settlement of the out-standing amounts. Meanwhile, the Democratic Alliance coun-cillors at Gamagara local municipality have requested the Speaker Dineo Moyo for an ur-gent meeting with the mayor Edwin Hantise.Provincially, DA Constituency Head of Lohatla and Member of the Provincial Legi-slature Melinda Hattingh, has lashed out at kom to prevent load shedding last year. Given the dire financial state of Gamagara municipality, this agreement was never sus-tainable and was subsequently not be hon-oured. All attempts made by the Kathu Gazette to reach the local government officials for comment were futile.the former acting Municipal Manager and current Chief Financial Manager, Moses Grond whom had entered into a payment agreement with Es-kom to prevent load shedding last year. Given the dire financial state of Gamagara municipality, this agreement was never sus-tainable and was subsequently not be hon-oured.

We want to allay fears that this is not true,” he said. “The bar-coded green ID book remains valid up until the department announces its expiration. Again, if the announce-ment is to be made, it would not be so prompt so as to unsettle citizens. There is no way they can be revoked without a long term notice. “The social media is not the depart-ment's mouthpiece. We still believe in our traditional channels of conveying im-portant information to the general public, where the print and electronic media play an important role,” Mr Pitso added. On an equal footing, the department is still appealing to the general public to come and apply for the new smart identi-ty card. New smart identity card appli-cants who did not have the green bar-coded ones before and pensioners aged above sixty get the new smart card for free. Anyone less than sixty years old and who has the green ID book, is eligible to pay R140 for the new smart card. Lastly, the Kuruman office is urging pa-rents of new born babies to register them on the spot at the Tswaragano and Ku-ruman hospitals between Mondays and Fridays.

The Kathu Gazette had already re-ported on page 16 of the edition dated 20 January 2018 that the expiration of the green bar-coded ID on 31 March 2018 was not true. Editor

The Home Affairs office in Kuruman overflowed as the community heeded false messages that were spread via the social media to the effect that the green identity book is being phased out with imme-diate effect. On March 06, 2018, the queue meandered for almost fifty metres outside the offices, raising eyebrows to any observant passerby. The Kathu Gazette approached the depart-ment's district spokesperson, Aobakwe Pitso, to shed light on the situation. “We are equally taken by surprise about this influx. Understandably, the community is responding to the hearsay from the social media that the green bar coded ID’s validity is expiring by March 31, 2018. This is causing untold confusion and panic among the people.

On Saturday 10 March 2018, Ka-thu Parkrun had an amazing day, with 159 people attending this run. Some people jogged while others walked the course. This was also a “awesome” parkrun due to the GM of Sishen mine, Mapi Mobwano, who also attended and enjoyed the run! Thank you to every-one who participated and who is trying to live a healthy life.“awesome” parkrun due to the GM of Sishen mine, Mapi Mobwano, who also attended and enjoyed the run! Thank you to every-one who participated and who is trying to live a healthy life.

The mayor of Ga-Segonyana local municipality, councillor Neo George Masegela, is taking the bull by its horns in tackling the infamous acts of gang-sterism at various schools in his constitu-ency. Accompanied by his councillors, different fellow stakeholders, that included Kathu Solar Park, police and school principalsp he visited Remmogo High School in Maruping village as a pilot project aimed at nipping the despicable behaviour of learners bullying one another in the bud. Some incidents have even been fatal when learners gang up to fight another group or individuals. Mayor Masegela emphasised that there is no other important programme that can sur-pass education and importantly so to the youths. “As authorities of this area we can-not condone gangsters at schools, no matter at what level. It is part of lawlessness in any learning environment and institution. Toge-ther with the police and school authorities we are determined to ensure that there is sanity in our schools. “As we grow old, who will take charge of the Remmogo High, police, municipality and the country at large if you turn schools to boxing or wrestling platforms? Every coun-try needs educated leaders, take this op-portunity to develop your skills and become respectable in the community. There is no societal respect granted to gangsters, but educated people receive it in leaps and bounds. limited, if not zeroed.” The Kathu Solar Park team donated twen-ty school bags and ten pairs of shoes ear-marked for the less privileged learners at the school. Similar donations were presented to various other schools too in the district. “We are visiting all schools under Ga-Segonyana municipality, preaching the same gospel that you, as learners, must take your education seriously and desist from lawlessness. More importantly once you are arrested by the police for wrong doing, your employment chances become limited, if not zeroed.”

The John Taolo Gaetsewe Business Chamber was launched on March 12, 2018 at the Gamagara communi-ty hall. The new establishment has so far garner-ed about 120 members drawn from the dis-trict's local municipalities - an emphatic ge-sture of enthusiasm shown by different em-erging business people. The committee and council structures, yet to be announced upon finalisation of can-didates, shall be composed of eight exec-utive committee members and seven non-executive ones to constitute a council. Briefing the media was Kingsley Tshaba-lala who said that the business chamber in the making is coming up with a refined ap-proach in the region, aimed at revamping business enhancement and creating an en-abling platform where opportunities must be distributed among members with great rationale and transparency. He said that emerging businesses need one another and, as a result, selfish ends need to be guarded against. The chamber wants to explore many ways to ensure that businesses are capa-citated so that the opportunities that arise are utilised to build confidence and good reputation. Very soon, the executive will ini-tiate extensive consultations with various stakeholders that include local economic offices to market the chamber and its broad objectives. The broader council shall be structured in such way that a certain group will target a certain sector to sell the chamber's idea of doing business and report back the out-comes as a monitoring and evaluation pro-cess. “We want to create cordial relationships with established businesses, organisations and institutions in an endeavour to learn, get support and enhance our capacity,” said Mr Tshabalala. “On the issue of new membership, the chamber is drafting a comprehensive piece of legislation that will guide minimum entry qualifications to ensure there is control, dis-cipline and sanity by prospective en-trants. The business chamber is prioritising a code of ethics within its ranks so that the level of transparency remains high to attract a reputable image and a sense of belonging by members,” Mr Tshabalala concluded.

Schools have become a vehicle to effect change and expedite spee-dy responses from authorities. Expressing their disgruntlement, the community of Magwagwe, Skerma, Ntswelengwe and Manyeding villages collectively resolved to shut down Bosele Middle School and Pitso Jantjie High School in Manyeding on March 01, 2018 as a catalytic step towards forcing Es-kom and the Joe Morolong municipality to avail electricity at these sparsely popu-lated villages. Speaking to one of the community re-presentatives, Mr Kgopiso Pencil Se-tungwane, a sub-station was erected by Eskom between Skerma and Manyeding to increase supply and capacity of elec-tricity in the four villages. According to the tribal office resolution reached in 2017, he said, after the com-pletion of the sub-station, electricity was to be supplied in these two villages spreading to the other two concurrently. A turn of events has however rebuffed the initial arrangements whereby electri-city is being installed selectively between Magwagwe and Ntswelengwe villages - a clear deviation from the initial agree-ment reached. This has riled the com-munity to take this unusual and insidious action, sensitive enough to stimulate the need to reverse the skewed provision of electricity in the estranged communities. Mr Setungwane said that in trying to reach an amicable consensus to the dis-pute, several meetings have been held with the police, the municipality, the chief and school principals, without success and as a result, this has finally led the community to explode. The recent protest, that also led to the barricading of roads with boulders and stones, witnessed the arrest of thirty people in the area who had to appear in the Mothibistad magistrate court on March 05, 2018.